A Whitney Houston Biopic Is Coming, With a Bohemian Rhapsody–esque Twist

It was only a matter of time before Whitney Houston got a jukebox movie musical of her own. On Thursday, it was announced that a biopic of the late singer was on the way, with the blessing of Houston’s estate. Stella Meghie (The Photograph) is in talks to direct, while Anthony McCarten, who penned 2018’s explosively successful Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, will write the script.

The film will also be produced by music legend Clive Davis, who guided Houston to prominence, and Pat Houston, the late singer’s sister-in-law and an overseer of her estate.

“From all my personal and professional experience with Whitney from her late teenage years to her tragic premature death, I know the full Whitney Houston story has not yet been told,” Davis said in a statement. “I am so glad that Anthony McCarten has committed to a no-holds-barred, musically rich screenplay that finally reveals the whole Whitney whose vocal genius deeply affected the world while she fiercely battled the demons that were to be her undoing.”

Houston, nicknamed “the Voice,” was one of the most celebrated and awarded singers in the country at the height of her fame, picking up six Grammys over the course of her career and selling 200 million albums worldwide. She rose to superstardom in the 1980s, churning out hits like “How Will I Know” and, of course, “I Wanna Dance With Somebody.” In 1992, she starred in The Bodyguard, which yielded one of her most iconic songs—a cover of Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You.” But Houston’s tremendous career highs also came with tragic lows, including a battle with drug addiction and a rocky marriage to Bobby Brown.

Considering Davis’s promise that I Wanna Dance With Somebody will take a “no-holds-barred” look, many fans will likely be wondering how McCarten will handle the more sensitive aspects of the singer’s life—including recent allegations that she was sexually abused as a child, and claims that she was queer, but closeted. Houston’s friend Robyn Crawford wrote about their alleged romantic relationship, which began when she was 19 and Houston was nearly 17, in her 2019 memoir A Song for You: My Life With Whitney Houston. “We never talked about labels, like lesbian or gay,” she said. “We just lived our lives and I hoped it could go on that way forever.” Crawford said that Houston eventually ended the physical aspect of their relationship in the ’80s. Rumors followed them, but Houston always denied the claims, saying she and Robyn were just friends.

Bohemian Rhapsody, meanwhile, faced criticism for the way it handled Freddie Mercury’s sexuality and eventual AIDS diagnosis. So, all eyes will be on this next project to see how Houston’s legacy is ultimately portrayed. I Wanna Dance With Somebody is not yet attached to a studio, nor does it have a set release date.

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